Wang Long bay

Phi Phi Island Attractions | Wang Long on Phi Phi Don Island

Wang Long bay captures the magic of Phi Phi Don Island and is rarely visited by sightseers and snorkelers as it is off the beaten track and too small thin to take the larger boats. The astonishingly glorious Wang Long bay is a deep cut in 100 meter high sheer cliffs on the western side of the Phi Phi Don Island mountains.

As you approach this entrance you can often miss it as Wang Long beach is obscured from the sea. The entrance to Wang Long bay is a thin channel that meanders first to the right to the edge of the reef and 3 National Marine Park moorings and then to the left before opening out to Wang Long beach and cave.

Wang Long bay beachhead is a thin sliver of sand backed by sheer cliff. At this beachhead there is the Wang Long Cave which is one of the key entrance points for the farmer climbers who farm the Swallow nests for the Chinese delicacy, Bird's nest soup. These caves are integral to the Bird's nest soup industry and the local workers warn any adventurous souls to not attempt to explore them. They are dangerous and there is no safety procedure in place. There is also an extreme walk/ scramble from Wang Long to Monkey beach on Tonsai Bay. The obvious elevated walk way gives way to some precarious climbing further inland. Again, there are no safety procedures in place for the foolhardy.

Spending a few hours at Wang Long bay beach on a quiet day is one of life’s great moments. It is unique, beguiling and picture perfect.

Tours to Wang Long bay

There are no tours to Wang Long bay as such as it is such a small destination and there is no room for more than 3-4 small boats at maximum. However the full day speedboat tour of Phi Phi does stop their as part of their view of the whole island subject to weather. The primary focus is on the snorkeling reef which though shaded does have some extremely large Batfish inhabitants and some fascinating wall corals.

Kayaking to Wang Long bay

In the early 2000's kayaking tours to Wang Long bay would leave at 4pm on Tonsai Beach at Phi Phi Don Village. This magical tour aimed to arrive at Wang Long during the sunset as the sun sets right in the middle of the Wang Long cut. This moment, this vision, sums up all the passion I have for Phi Phi Island. Read the account of the kayak tour to Wang Long here.

Wang Long bay in Low season

Wang Long bay faces west and this means that any waves coming in from the west will make the entrance to the cave dangerous to any craft. When you have a westerly waves bounce off the sheer walls and then off each other and this creates a washing machine effect that is quite alarming to look at, never mind experience. This ensures that Wang Long Bay is rarely visited from May till the end of October.